ACTIVITY 2

THE DEVELOPMENT
OF CRICKET

Teacher Notes

Aims: to learn that cricket is a sport which has evolved over many decades
to learn about the main developments in this evolution
to learn that developments pre-1850 were mainly in the south east
to learn that the first cricket leagues were founded in the industrial north
and midlands and were inspired by the success of the FA Cup and the
Football League

Related Skills: reading for information

making links between historical events and changes
use of atlas and maps

Time: two 70 minute lessons

Resources: ‘A General History of Cricket’ worksheet

‘A General History of Cricket’ answer sheet
Map A: England, Scotland and Wales
Map B: England, Scotland and Wales
atlas

Activities: 1. Read ‘A General History of Cricket’ information sheet with the

class. Ask children to identify any developments which surprise
them.

2. Read the short worksheet on this information and ask children to

complete it.
3. Read the instructions for ‘Completing Map A’. Point out that:
the type of location - town, city or county - is
identified on the labels
the small box at the end of the label is for the colour to
identify the development there as pre or post 1850.
Do the first example, Newenden, with the class before setting
them to do the rest either individually or in pairs.

4. When the map is completed, read ‘Interpreting the Map’ with the
class. Explain the following rough definitions of areas of
England:
north: Lancashire, Yorkshire, Durham and further north
to the Scottish border
midlands: region around Birmingham – the centre of
the country
south east: region around London
south west: region around Bristol

5. Read the instructions for ‘Completing Map B’. Set the children
this activity and the section headed ‘Interpreting the Map’.

6. Go through work covered in this section, recapping the main

points from the aims at the beginning of these Teacher Notes.
 ACTIVITY 2
THE DEVELOPMENT
OF CRICKET

Curriculum References

ENGLISH: En2: Reading

Knowledge, skills and understanding:
Reading strategies
To read with fluency, accuracy and understanding, pupils should be taught to use:
1d contextual understanding.

Understanding texts
Pupils should be taught to:
2a use inference and deduction
2b look for meaning beyond the literal
2c make connections between different parts of a text.

Reading for information

Pupils should be taught to:
3a scan texts to find information
3c obtain specific information through detailed reading
3d draw on different features of texts, including print, to obtain meaning.

Non-fiction and non-literary texts

To develop understanding and appreciation of non-fiction and non-literary texts,
pupils should be taught to:
5g engage with challenging and demanding subject matter.

Breadth of study
7 During the key stage, pupils should be taught the Knowledge, skills and
understanding through the following ranges of literature and non-fiction and non-
literary texts.

Non-fiction and non-literary texts

The range should include:
9b print information materials (for example, textbooks, reports).
 ENGLISH: En3: Writing
Knowledge, skills and understanding:
Handwriting and presentation
Pupils should be taught to:
5b use different forms of handwriting for different purposes (for example, print for
labelling maps or diagrams, a clear, neat hand for finished presented work, a
faster script for notes).

HISTORY
Knowledge, skills and understanding:
Chronological understanding
Pupils should be taught to:
1a place events, people and changes into correct periods of time
1b Use dates and vocabulary relating to the passing of time, including ancient,
modern, BC, AD, century and decade.

Knowledge and understanding of events, people and changes in the past

Pupils should be taught to:
2d to describe and make links between the main events, situations and changes
within and across the different periods and societies studied.

Historical enquiry
Pupils should be taught:
4b to ask and answer questions, and to select and record information relevant to the
focus of the enquiry.

Organisation and communication

Pupils should be taught to:
5a recall, select and organise historical information
5b use dates and historical vocabulary to describe the periods studied
5c communicate their knowledge and understanding of history in a variety of ways
(for example, writing).
 Breadth of study:
6 During the key stage, pupils should be taught the Knowledge, skills and
understanding through a local history study, three British history studies, a
European history study and a world history study.

Local history study

7 A study investigating how an aspect in the local area has changed over a long
period of time, or how the locality was affected by a significant national or local
event or development or by the work of a significant individual.

Victorian Britain or Britain since 1930

Teachers can choose between a study of Victorian Britain or Britain since 1930.
11a Victorian Britain: A study of the impact of significant individuals, events and
changes in work and transport on the lives of men, women and children from
different sections of society.

GEOGRAPHY
Knowledge, skills and understanding:
Teachers should ensure that geographical enquiry and skills are used when
developing knowledge and understanding of places, patterns and processes, and
environmental change and sustainable development

Geographical enquiry and skills

In developing geographical skills, pupils should be taught:
2a to use appropriate geographical vocabulary (for example, industry)
2c to use atlases and maps at a range of scales (for example, using contents, keys)

Knowledge and understanding of places

Pupils should be taught:
3b the location of places they study and other significant places
3g to recognise how places fit within a wider geographical context (for example, as
part of a bigger region or country) and are interdependent (for example, through
movements of people)
 Breadth of study:
During the key stage, pupils should be taught the Knowledge, skills and
understanding through the study of two localities and three themes:

Localities
6a a locality in the United Kingdom

In their study of localities and themes, pupils should:

7a study at a range of scales – local, regional and national

PSHE & CITIZENSHIP

Knowledge, skills and understanding:
Developing good relationships and respecting the differences between people
Pupils should be taught:
4b to think about the lives of people living in other places and times and people with
different customs
 ACTIVITY 2
THE DEVELOPMENT
OF CRICKET

Timeline I

1300 first reference to cricket (at Newenden, Kent) in clothing accounts

of King Edward I
1344 ‘club-ball’, an early form of cricket played
1550 cricket played at ‘The Free School’, Guildford, Surrey
1646 first recorded cricket match, Coxheath, Kent
1676 first reference to cricket abroad, played by English residents at
Aleppo, Syria
1709 first ‘county match’, Kent v London
1744 laws of cricket drawn up, a revision of an earlier code
1751 cricket mentioned in Yorkshire and Durham
1767 formation of the Hambledon club, Hampshire, whose players
develop new and much advanced techniques
1771 Sheffield v Nottingham one of the first ‘major matches’ in the north
1787 MCC (Marylebone Cricket Club) formed
1788 MCC revise laws of cricket
1880 publication of first book on technique by Thomas Boxall
1814 Lord’s cricket ground opened as headquarters of The MCC and of
cricket in Marylebone, London. It is still regarded as the ‘home of
cricket’.
1828 bowlers allowed to raise bowling arm above waist, but not
shoulder; it is called ‘round arm bowling’.
1836 first reference to batting pads
1846 ‘The All England XI’, a team of professionals organised by William
Clarke, begin playing ‘against the odds’ matches (e.g. 11 v 18 or 11
v 22) all over the country. For the first time, many local people have
the chance to see and copy techniques of best players in the land.
1848 WG Grace born at Downend near Bristol – by 1870 he becomes
world’s first sporting superstar and the most famous Victorian after
the Prime Minister and the Queen
1852 ‘The United England XI’ formed by John Wisden. Now two such XIs
touring the country
1859 first overseas tour by English cricketers – to North America
1860-61 first overseas tour by English cricketers to Australia
1864 overarm bowling legalised; bowling arm can now be raised above
the shoulder; regarded as ‘birth of modern cricket’.
first Wisden Cricketers’ Almanac published; Wisden is still the main
annual cricket publication
1877 first Test Match, Australia v England at Melbourne
1880 first Test Match in England, England v Australia at The Oval,
London
1882 ‘The Ashes’ invented after a ‘fully representative’ England team is
beaten for the first time at The Oval by Australia. Some ladies burn
the bails and placed them in an urn, representing the cremation
and ashes of English cricket. Series between England and
Australia have been played for ‘The Ashes’ ever since.
1883 First competition for amateur clubs – Heavy Woollen Cup – a
knockout competition for clubs within a six-mile radius of Batley
Town Hall.
1888 The Football League is founded. Its success inspires the formation
of many cricket leagues. Between 1888 and 1893 cricket leagues
founded include: Bolton, Birmingham, Lancashire (based around
Burnley), Central Lancashire (based around Rochdale), Leeds,
West Yorkshire, West Riding, West Riding Central (based around
Dewsbury) and Huddersfield.
1889-90 South Africa’s national cricket competition, The Currie Cup, is
founded

1890 first official county championship

1892-93 Australia’s national cricket competition, The Sheffield Shield is
founded.
1926 The Women’s Cricket Association formed.
1928 Don Bradman, world’s greatest ever batsman, makes debut for
Australia.
1932-33 ‘Bodyline’ controversy between England and Australia. England
bowl short and fast at the body, intimidating batsmen to give
catches as they use the bat to defend themselves from injury.
Australian board protest, describing tactic as ‘unsportsmanlike’ and
almost causing break down in diplomatic relations between the two
countries.
1938 first televised test match
1949 record crowds as enthusiasm for sport peaks; sport symbolises a
return to normality after World War II
1957 Gary Sobers, world’s greatest all-rounder, makes debut for West
Indies
1963 distinction between amateurs and professionals in English first
class cricket abolished. Previously, amateurs, as the ‘upper class’
cricketers who could officially afford to play for nothing, had been
afforded more privileges – better dressing rooms, better food etc.
Unofficially, the ‘expenses’ paid to some amateurs were higher
than the wages paid to some professionals.
1965 first limited overs competition for counties and cricket’s first major
sponsorship deal – The Gillette Cup
1969 first Sunday cricket competition for counties – a limited overs
league – The John Player League.
1970 South Africa isolated from international cricket owing to apartheid
regime
1971 first limited-overs (one-day) international, Australia v England at
Melbourne
1975 first World Cup, a limited overs competition
1977 coloured clothing, floodlights and batting helmets used in Kerry
Packer’s World Series Cricket Tournament in Australia, all
innovations later adopted by cricket across the world
2003 Twenty20 (20 overs per side) introduced as a shorter, faster form
of cricket to appeal to modern tastes
 ACTIVITY 2
THE DEVELOPMENT
OF CRICKET

Timeline II

Read the information sheet ‘Timeline’.

What is the connection between the developments of 1828 and 1836?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________

The ‘birth of modern cricket’ is said to date from the year overarm bowling
was allowed. When was this?

____________

Read the developments of 1846 and 1852. ‘22 of Todmorden’ played the
‘United England XI’ in 1864 and the ‘All England XI’ in 1868. How would these
matches have helped local cricketers to improve their game?

______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________
Completing Map A

Put an asterisk (*) on the sheet ‘A General History of Cricket’ to mark

developments which happened at particular places in England.

Use your atlas to locate these places. Write the labels for them in the boxes
on Map A.

Using small circles at the ends of labelling lines on the map, mark
developments which happened before 1850 in red, and developments which
happened after 1850 in blue. Use these colours to complete the key to the
map.

If a match is mentioned, the label shows the place of the first named team as
that is where the match was played. For example, Kent v London was played
in Kent.

If a town is mentioned, such as Guildford, the label is to an exact point on the

map. If a county is mentioned, such as Durham or West Yorkshire, the label
points to the general area of the county. Marylebone is a borough in north-
west London.

Interpreting the Map

Circle the part of England where most of cricket’s early developments took
place.

NORTH MIDLANDS SOUTH EAST SOUTH WEST

Circle the two parts of England where the early cricket leagues were formed.

NORTH MIDLANDS SOUTH EAST SOUTH WEST

Links between cricket, football and rugby

Football and rugby developed into the games we know today in the 1860s and
1870s. Before that they were basically the same game and very violent. Are
you surprised that cricket was a recognised and organised sport over 100
years before football was invented?

___________

Why?
______________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________
Completing Map B

‘Founder members’ are those who join together to start something. The
following clubs are the 12 founder members of the Football League (with their
place name in bold):

Accrington;
Aston Villa (in Birmingham);
Blackburn Rovers;
Bolton Wanderers;
Burnley;
Derby County;
Everton (in Liverpool);
Notts County (in Nottingham);
Preston North End;
Stoke;
West Bromwich Albion;
Wolverhampton Wanderers.

The Football League was so popular that cricket immediately copied football
and formed its own leagues. Leagues were also formed in rugby union in
Lancashire and West Yorkshire in the early 1890s leading to the split of rugby
league from rugby union in 1895.

Use your atlas to locate the places which had founder members of the
Football League. Write the labels of the names of the teams in the boxes on
Map B.

Interpreting the Map

Circle the two parts of England where the founder members of the Football
League came from.

NORTH MIDLANDS SOUTH EAST SOUTH WEST

Are these roughly the same areas in which the first cricket leagues were
founded, or different areas?
_______________
 ACTIVITY 2
THE DEVELOPMENT
OF CRICKET
Answers
A General History of Cricket

The legalisation of round arm bowling enabled bowlers to bowl more quickly.
Batsmen therefore needed greater protection from injury and this led to the
introduction of batting pads.

1864 is regarded as the year when modern cricket was ‘born’.

Todmorden’s matches against the United England and the All England teams, for
instance, allowed local players to see and copy the techniques of the best players in
the land.

Completing Map A

Number Place Colour

1 Newenden red
2 Guildford red
3 Coxheath red
4 Kent red
5 Yorkshire and Durham red
6 Hambledon red
7 Sheffield red
8 Marylebone (London) red
9 Downend (nr Bristol) red
10 Bolton blue
11 Birmingham blue
12 Burnley blue
13 Rochdale blue
14 Leeds blue
15 Dewsbury blue
16 Huddersfield blue
Interpreting the Map

Most of cricket’s early developments took place in the SOUTH EAST.

The early cricket leagues were formed in the NORTH and MIDLANDS.

Links between cricket, football and rugby

Children may answer ‘yes’ or ‘no’ to the question: ‘Are you surprised that cricket was
a recognised and organised sport over 100 years before football was invented?’. The
key to the answer is that they support their feelings with a logical reason.

Completing Map B

Number Team
1 Accrington
2 Burnley
3 Blackburn Rovers
4 Preston North End
5 Bolton Wanderers
6 Everton
7 Derby County
8 Notts County
9 Stoke
10 Wolverhampton Wanderers
11 West Bromwich Albion
12 Aston Villa

Interpreting the Map

The founder members of the Football League came from the NORTH and
MIDLANDS.

The Birth of the Leagues

1. The first national team competition was the FA Cup. It was first played in 1872.

2. In a league competition every team plays every other team, usually twice, home
and away. This guarantees a season of matches, all of them played for points which
are added up so that a comparison with other clubs can be made in a league table. In a
knockout competition once a team loses they do not play any more games. This only
guarantees teams one match.
3.
Name of Ground Name of Cricket Team Name of Football Team
Thorneyholme Road Accrington
East Lancashire Blackburn Rovers
Turf Moor Burnley

4. Before league cricket, clubs played challenge matches.

5. Two years passed between the formation of the Football League and the formation
of the Lancashire League.

6. The Lancashire Cricket League copied the points system of two for a win, one for a
draw and none for a defeat from the Football League.

7. ‘Unique’ means ‘the only one’.

8. Todmorden’s ‘unique and special’ achievement was to be a founder member of

both the Lancashire and Central Lancashire leagues, the two most famous cricket
leagues in the world in the 20th century.